The concept art of Warlords of Draenor shows landscapes of some of the zones, and historical heroes and villains of the past of Draenor such as Orgrim Doomhammer, Garrosh Hellscream, Gul’dan, Velen and Durotar.

Lead the charge against the fiercest orc clans from Warcraft® lore
Join your friends on the front lines with an instant level-90 character upgrade

ANAHEIM, Calif.—November 8, 2013—The heroes of Azeroth are on the verge of a war that will reforge the fate of two worlds. Announced today at BlizzCon® 2013, World of Warcraft®: Warlords of Draenor™, the fifth expansion to Blizzard Entertainment’s acclaimed massively multiplayer online role-playing game, sends players to the world of Draenor at a pivotal moment in history to fight against and alongside legends from Warcraft’s brutal past.

Across Draenor’s savage jungles and battle-scarred plains, Azeroth’s heroes will engage in a mythic conflict involving mystical draenei champions and mighty orc clans, and cross axes with the likes of Grommash Hellscream, Blackhand, and Ner’zhul at the height of their primal power. Players will need to scour this unwelcoming land in search of allies to help build a desperate defense against the old Horde’s formidable engine of conquest—or else watch their own world’s bloody, war-torn history repeat itself.

“Warlords of Draenor gives players a chance to take a commanding role in one of the Warcraft series’ most crucial conflicts,” said Mike Morhaime, CEO and cofounder of Blizzard Entertainment. “This expansion also includes features that make it easy for anyone to jump right into the action, whether they’ve played WoW at some point in the past or are just setting foot in Azeroth for the first time.”

To help new and returning players answer the call to arms on Draenor, the expansion will enable anyone to instantly boost one character to level 90, including a newly created character, quickly getting them up to speed and ready to enjoy the latest content with their friends.

To establish a foothold on Draenor once they’ve arrived, the displaced champions of the Horde and Alliance will be able to construct their own Garrison, an expandable, customizable stronghold that will serve as each player’s personal base of operations throughout the course of the expansion. As the Garrison grows, players will be able to recruit NPC allies and followers to take up residence, gathering resources and embarking on missions on the player’s orders.

Warlords of Draenor will also introduce fully revamped player character models and animations for many of World of Warcraft’s existing playable races, bringing the orcs, humans, and several other longtime residents of Azeroth up to the visual standards of newer races while still maintaining their iconic style and identity.

Along with these new features, World of Warcraft players will enjoy a wide array of new content on their way to the new level cap of 100, including new Zones, Dungeons, Raids, Scenarios, Battlegrounds, and more. Warlords of Draenor will also introduce questing improvements designed to encourage exploration and add unpredictability to players’ ongoing adventures.

BlizzCon 2013 attendees are able to play World of Warcraft: Warlords of Draenor on the show floor, and BlizzCon Virtual Ticket buyers can learn more about the expansion online by watching panels taking place during the event. Further details about Warlords of Draenor will be announced as development continues. For more information, visit the expansion’s official website at www.worldofwarcraft.com/warlords.

With multiple games in development, Blizzard Entertainment has numerous positions currently available—visit http://jobs.blizzard.com for more information and to learn how to apply.
About Blizzard Entertainment, Inc.

Best known for blockbuster hits including World of Warcraft® and the Warcraft®, StarCraft®, and Diablo® franchises, Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. (www.blizzard.com), a division of Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ: ATVI), is a premier developer and publisher of entertainment software renowned for creating some of the industry’s most critically acclaimed games. Blizzard Entertainment’s track record includes sixteen #1-selling games* and multiple Game of the Year awards. The company’s online-gaming service, Battle.net®, is one of the largest in the world, with millions of active players.

*Based on internal company records and reports from key distribution partners.

World of Warcraft®: Warlords of Draenor™, the fifth expansion to Blizzard Entertainment’s acclaimed massively multiplayer online role-playing game, sends players to the world of Draenor at a pivotal moment in history to fight against and alongside legends from Warcraft’s brutal past.

Across Draenor’s savage jungles and battle-scarred plains, Azeroth’s heroes will engage in a mythic conflict involving mystical draenei champions and mighty orc clans, and cross axes with the likes of Grommash Hellscream, Blackhand, and Ner’zhul at the height of their primal power. Players will need to scour this unwelcoming land in search of allies to help build a desperate defense against the Iron Horde’s formidable engine of conquest—or else watch their own world’s bloody, war-torn history repeat itself.

The heroes of Azeroth are on the verge of a war that will reforge the fate of two worlds. World of Warcraft®: Warlords of Draenor™, the fifth expansion to Blizzard Entertainment’s acclaimed massively multiplayer online role-playing game, sends players to the world of Draenor at a pivotal moment in history to fight against and alongside legends from Warcraft’s brutal past.

Across Draenor’s savage jungles and battle-scarred plains, Azeroth’s heroes will engage in a mythic conflict involving mystical draenei champions and mighty orc clans, and cross axes with the likes of Grommash Hellscream, Blackhand, and Ner’zhul at the height of their primal power. Players will need to scour this unwelcoming land in search of allies to help build a desperate defense against the Iron Horde’s formidable engine of conquest—or else watch their own world’s bloody, war-torn history repeat itself.

Blizzard Entertainment Rob Pardo announced Hearthstone will enter open beta on December 2013 (January 2014 tops). In addition, the BlizzCon 2013 exclusive card to be given to BlizzCon attendees and the Virtual Ticket viewers is The Elite Tauren Chieftain.

Rob Pardo also announced the Android version of Hearthstone is coming.

Blizzplanet writers Danny Perschonok (Naka), Red Shirt Guy and Montoya had a blast on Thursday meeting staff members of other fansites and podcasts; the Blizzard developers and Community Managers during the Blizzard Community Mixer.

Alex Afrasiabi and Red Shirt Guy got together for a well-deserved lore discussion.

The BlizzCon 2013 Opening Ceremony and the StarCraft II WCS Global Finals can be watched live for free. Read the details below and follow the links to enjoy both livestreams. In addition, those who decide to buy the Virtual Ticket to watch the livestream should know that VODs can be watched for the next two weeks and you get the same digital perks included in the Collector’s Edition.

BlizzCon 2013 begins tomorrow, and you’ll be able to watch the opening ceremony and eSports action—including the StarCraft II WCS Global Finals, World of Warcraft Arena Global Invitational, and Hearthstone Innkeeper’s Invitational—streaming for free at www.blizzcon.com/live-stream/. The opening ceremony is scheduled to begin on Friday at 11 a.m. Pacific, and tournaments run throughout both days of the show—check out the BlizzCon schedule for details.

If you’re interested in even more BlizzCon coverage, including developer panels, the costume and talent contests, the closing concert with Blink-182, and more, you can still purchase a BlizzCon Virtual Ticket, which also includes this year’s in-game goodies for World of Warcraft, StarCraft II, Diablo III, and Hearthstone. The Virtual Ticket also lets you watch on-demand replays of any coverage you might have missed.

Robust continued engagement with our core franchises drove digi tal revenue, which constituted a majority of all revenue. This quarter demonstrates that games like Call of Duty and World of Warcraft engage and entertain our fans year round.”

Kotick added, “We recently released new titles in two of the most popular franchises in entertainment, Call of Duty: Ghosts and Skylanders SWAP Force. We are thrilled by the quality of those games and we are excited to show what we can do with them on next-generation consoles in the coming weeks. We are also in the process of a beta launch for our first major free-to-play game, Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft.

However, we continue to believe that the fourth quarter this year presents a unique and challenging landscape due to increased competition and uncertainties surrounding the console transition.

We are confident in our ability to navigate these challenges successfully, particularly in light of the recent completion of our transaction with Vivendi and the focus and flexibility provided by our return to independence.”

As of September 30, 2013, Blizzard Entertainment’s World of Warcraft remains the #1 subscription-based MMORPG, with approximately 7.6 million subscribers.

In North America, Blizzard Entertainment’s StarCraft® II: Heart of the Swarm® was the #1 PC game for the first nine months of 2013.

Morhaime: Q3 was an eventful quarter for Blizzard. We launched our first console game in many years with Diablo III. We also announced an expansion pack for Diablo III — Reaper of Souls.

Additionally, beta testing for Hearthstone kicked off and we released significant content update for World of Warcraft.

All of this activity has netted out to a strong quarter where we ended higher in net revenue and operating income versus Q2 mostly due to the Diablo III console launch on September.

Revenues and income were down year over year — as expected — due to the successful launch of Mists of Pandaria and the ongoing sales of Diablo III during the same quarter last year.

Going into more specific details with World of Warcraft, we’re very pleased with the response to Siege of Orgrimmar — the massive content update we released in September. This update included a huge new raid dungeon with major story elements, as well as a new area to explore and features that improved the game’s accessibility.

Flexible rates now allow groups of variable size to participate in the end-game raiding dungeons. Meanwhile, the Proving Grounds feature trains players to improve their play in specific roles, preparing them to participate in end-game content. Player response to the content has been good, and we saw increased engagement that has contributed to maintaining relatively stable subscribership quarter-over-quarter. We’ll continue to invest heavily in World of Warcraft to deliver frequent, high-quality content to our players.

Moving on to Diablo III, we are pleased with the response to the games launched on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. Lifetime sell-through of the game across all platforms has reached over 14 million copies, and reviews have been very positive about how the game plays on console. Much of the praise has been centered on changes we made to the loot system and our decision to keep the auction house off of the console platform. Players and critics alike have noted that these changes have resulted in a more fun and satisfying game experience. That reaction factored in our decision to remove the auction house from the PC version of Diablo III effective next March, which players have also responded very positively to.

We’re building upon those design philosophies for loot and incorporating them into Reaper of Souls, the Diablo III expansion pack — which is coming for PC and PS4 in 2014.

In addition to the new loot system, Reaper of Souls will include an additional player class, the Crusader, and more gameplay modes for the endgame to keep players engaged. The reaction to Reaper of Souls at Gamescom was very positive, and we are looking forward to revealing more about the game at BlizzCon.

It was also a busy quarter for Hearthstone, our free-to-play digital card game for PC and iPad based on the Warcraft universe. In Hearthstone, players build decks of cards that feature familiar spells and creatures from World of Warcraft, and battle against each other using the cards. Players can collect cards simply by playing or by purchasing digital packs. They can also purchase entries into a special competitive mode of play called The Arena in exchange for either in-game currency or a small fee.

We’ve seen a great response from the community with the closed beta test, which kicked off in August. Hearthstone quickly became one of the most popular streaming games on Twitch, and we have been expanding the beta test to encompass more regions and a wider group of players. We’re continuing to work on polishing the game as we drive towards open beta testing.

Rounding out our big announcements since the last call is the name change of Blizzard All-Stars to Heroes of the Storm, which is our take on free-to-play hero brawlers. We’ve done an extensive internal test on Heroes over the past several months, and as the game has evolved, we felt it was appropriate to change the name to something more fitting of the gameplay experience.

We’re looking forward to sharing more details about Heroes at BlizzCon, which is taking place this weekend at the Anaheim Convention Center. This is another sold-out show, with more than 20,000 attendees coming to Anaheim from more than 40 different countries.

Our global community will also follow along through DIRECTV, online pay-per-view on blizzcon.com and partner broadcast in other regions. We will be showcasing our biggest pipeline of games ever and showing our appreciation for our community through contests, meet-and-greets and of course, major eSports spectacles.

The World of Warcraft Arena invitational and the global grand finals of the StarCraft II World Championship Series will be taking place, along with an invitational tournament for Hearthstone, featuring popular community personalities.

All of us at Blizzard can’t wait to get back to BlizzCon and connect with our players. We hope you’ll join us there or follow along online with a virtual ticket available online at blizzcon.com.

We are looking forward to celebrating a shared passion of gaming with our players, hearing their feedback on our newest game content and taking that energy and knowledge back to work as we drive towards an exciting 2014 for Blizzard.

Blizzard Entertainment sent a press release to all Battle.net subscribers giving a round up of events to happen at BlizzCon, and the goodies obtained by purchasing the BlizzCon Virtual Ticket to watch the livestream.

This year’s BlizzCon includes discussion panels with Blizzard developers; community cosplayers; and Duncan Jones , director of the upcoming Warcraft® film. Also taking place are the StarCraft® II World Championship Series Global Final and World of Warcraft® Arena Invitational, in which top pro gamers from around the world will be competing for cash prizes and ultimate glory. Jay Mohr is back this year to host the ever-popular community contests, and SoCal punk legends Blink-182 will be performing an epic rock concert to wrap up the show on Saturday night.

BlizzCon tickets once again sold out in seconds, but anyone can still attend the event from the comfort of their home with the BlizzCon Virtual Ticket. Viewers will receive over 60 hours of live HD coverage of the event (including Blink’s sure-to-be-wild performance) across five channels over the Internet. Virtual Ticket holders will also receive all the BlizzCon-exclusive in-game goodies:

World of Warcraft in-game pet—the valiant Murkalot

To-be-revealed Hearthstone™: Heroes of Warcraft™ card

BlizzCon-themed “Mark of Death” Diablo® III banner

“Tearin’ Stitches” StarCraft II portrait and Stitches’ Hook decal

DIRECTV® customers in the United States can also order BlizzCon 2013 as a Pay Per View event and receive a free Virtual Ticket. In addition, the BlizzCon opening ceremony and eSports tournaments will be streamed free online at www.blizzcon.com. More info on the Virtual Ticket can be found at www.blizzcon.com/virtual-ticket/.

“We can’t wait to get back to BlizzCon and share details about our latest games with our most passionate players,” said Mike Morhaime , CEO and cofounder of Blizzard Entertainment . “It’s going to be a truly unforgettable weekend.”

BlizzCons of years past have featured an array of exciting panels, unveilings, and entertainment, including the world debuts of the latest World of Warcraft content, the first-ever public hands-on with StarCraft II and Diablo III, and epic rock performances by Foo Fighters and Tenacious D.

BlizzCon would not be possible without the enthusiasm of Blizzard Entertainment gamers around the world and the generous support of the event’s partners, who provide demo-station hardware, peripherals, and more. This year’s sponsors are Intel, NVIDIA, Sony Computer Entertainment , DIRECTV, SteelSeries, GIGABYTE, Rosewill, and EVGA.

Anyone attending BlizzCon who’s looking to join the ranks at Blizzard should bring their resumes, portfolios, or business cards. The Blizzard recruiting team will be on hand to review materials and discuss any job-related questions. More information on available Blizzard career opportunities can be found at http://jobs.blizzard.com, LinkedIn Blizzard Careers, and http://twitter.com/@blizzardcareers.

Blizzard Entertainment registered the trademark “Warlords of Draenor” in United States and Europe. All seems to indicate Blizzard will announce the next World of Warcraft expansion at BlizzCon on Friday, November 8th.

The Intelectual Property (IP Australia) Office listed a new Trademark filed by Blizzard Entertainment today November 1, 2013. Just a week before BlizzCon 2013.

The new trademark is “Warlords of Draenor”.

A trademark doesn’t always tells you with certainty what it is about — for example Heroes of the Storm. The “Draenor” part is obvious to be a Warcraft-themed related game. Yet, we don’t know the genre. It is open to interpretation.

It might be World of Warcraft: Warlords of Draenor (a new expansion). It might be Warcraft IV: Warlords of Draenor. It might be Hearthstone: Warlords of Draenor. Or an entirely different genre or game altogether based on Warcraft.

I do have to bring up that at BlizzCon 2010, during the Lore Q&A it was mentioned there are plans for a revamped Outland, which fits with this new trademark. Outland was formerly “Planet Draenor”. It was destroyed when Ner’zhul opened several portals in Draenor which accidentally tore the planet apart. (Read the Warcraft II: Beyond the Dark Portal missions)

The destruction of Draenor was novelized a few years ago by Christie Golden and Aaron Rosenberg — read World of Warcraft: Chronicles of War (which collects 4 novels including Beyond the Dark Portal)

Based on Wrathion’s Legendary questline concerning the return of the Burning Legion, it might lean towards the trademark referring to a World of Warcraft expansion. That’s my two cents.

We can argue a plethora of different speculations about what it might be, but the good news is Blizzard Entertainment might announce whatever this is at BlizzCon on November 8-9th. You don’t need to miss what they reveal. Get the BlizzCon Virtual Ticket to watch the livestream.

The video below takes you to the BlizzCon 2010 moment when Chris Metzen and Alex “furor” Afrasiabi mention an Outland revamp. (Jump to minute: 12:05)

Additionally, during the “Mists of Pandaria” launch party, Chris Metzen mentioned the return of Turalyon and Alleria in the next expansion after Mists of Pandaria.

Turalyon was also brought up during the Cataclysm Lore panel at BlizzCon 2010. (Jump to minute: 3:05)

IRVINE, Calif. –(BUSINESS WIRE)– Thousands of gamers are about to come to a party and celebrate all the big things (and all the small things too) . . . and maybe even fall in love with a gnome at a rock show when legendary Southern California punk rock trio Blink-182 headlines the closing concert at Blizzard Entertainment’s sold-out BlizzCon® gaming convention, taking place November 8—9 at the Anaheim Convention Center.

Acclaimed worldwide for their influential and groundbreaking pop-punk sound, Blink-182 has achieved massive critical and commercial success, with over 35 million albums sold. Their third album, Enema of the State, went quintuple platinum and catapulted the band into superstardom.

Unfortunately for fans of Blink-182’s “What’s My Age Again?” video, Anaheim city ordinances strictly forbid the band from running naked through the streets around the convention center. BlizzCon attendees are kindly asked to adhere to the same policy.

“After two days of hard work watching games and playing games and talking about games, we can’t think of a better way to kick back and relax than to have your face melted by Blink-182,” said Mike Morhaime , CEO and cofounder of Blizzard Entertainment . “We’re thrilled to have such an awesome band helping us bring BlizzCon to an epic conclusion.”

“Nothing beats touring and playing in front of a live crowd,” said Tom DeLonge , Blink-182 guitarist and vocalist. “Our roots are in Southern California , so playing at BlizzCon will be like having a show in our own backyard—only with a couple thousand more orcs and elves in loincloths and bikini armor.”

BlizzCon is a celebration of the global player communities surrounding Blizzard Entertainment’s Warcraft®, Diablo®, and StarCraft® game universes. The show will have an array of activities, including discussion panels, competitive and casual tournaments, contests, hands-on playtime with current and upcoming Blizzard Entertainment games, and more.

While tickets to the convention are no longer available, viewers at home can join the excitement by ordering a BlizzCon Virtual Ticket, which offers comprehensive live coverage of both days of the event, including Blink-182’s performance, via multi-channel HD Internet stream for $39.99 USD (pricing and availability may vary by region).

DIRECTV customers in the United States can order the BlizzCon 2013 Pay Per View event, priced at $49.99 USD , which includes access to the Virtual Ticket online stream. Visit www.directv.com/blizzcon for more details.

With multiple games in development, Blizzard Entertainment has numerous positions currently available—visit http://jobs.blizzard.com for more information and to learn how to apply. As BlizzCon draws closer, further details about the show will be announced at www.blizzcon.com.

Blizzplanet is giving away a BlizzCon ticket courtesy of Blizzard Entertainment. We’d like to give this ticket to a lucky fan. This is a ticket only with no flight nor hotel accommodations.

Several fansites have similar giveaways (check them out at the bottom of the page). You should participate in as many of them as possible to increase your chances at winning one.

The winner must show a Photo ID at the Anaheim Convention Center’s entrance and the name in the Photo ID must match the winner’s full name.

That said, read the instructions to find out how to participate.

1. You must either be following us on Facebook or Twitter (click the links to reach our social pages). The winner picked must be in the list of followers.

Privacy Policy: Blizzplanet will not share any of this info with any third-parties. Only Blizzard Entertainment will have the info of the winner to be able to print the BlizzCon Badge. After the winner is chosen randomly, all data will be deleted permanently. By participating in this giveaway you give us authorization to share this with Blizzard Entertainment.

This giveaway ends on Saturday, November 2 at noon (EST / New York). The winner will be contacted shortly after. Please, respond within 48 hours.

Visit the www.BlizzCon.com website to see the panel schedule for November 8-9th.

If you were not a winner, don’t forget to order the BlizzCon Virtual Ticket which allows you to watch the livestream on your internet browser. VODs will be playable for two weeks. Or check details with DirecTV.

2. Fill the form below with accurate information (The selected winner’s full name, email and character name will be provided to Blizzard Entertainment to create the BlizzCon badge). Only one entry per participant allowed. Duplicates will disqualify the participant.

Those who didn’t know, Jason Hayes returned to Blizzard Entertainment some time ago (June 2012) as an in-house World of Warcraft Senior Composer. A couple days ago, Jason Hayes and Michael Gluck co-founded and launched CRITICAL HIT and partnered with a Top group of professional musicians to create a CD Album that’s currently under pre-order for $14.99 and will ship on October 31. All items pre-ordered by October 31 will be signed by Jason Hayes!

The great news is that CRITICAL HIT will be performing live at BlizzCon 2013 on Saturday, November 9th at 10am – 11am. Critical Hit will perform music from Blizzard titles during the Sound Panel. Fans can watch this live performance through the BlizzCon 2013 livestream or DirecTV.

Among these musicians are:

Nita Strauss – Guitar

Taylor Davis – Violin

Tina Guo – Cello

Salome Scheidegger – Piano

Doug Belote – Drums

Joel Taylor – Drums

Pedro Eustache – World Winds

David Frank Paich – Piano

Chet Stevens – Guitar

Sara Andon – Flute

Carlitos del Puerto – Bass

Adam Gubman – Arranger

Laurence Juber – Guitar

Shannon Canchola – Flute

Kevin Dooley – Drums

The CRITICAL HIT Music CD contains a remastering of the World of Warcraft main theme soundtrack under the title: “Legends of Azeroth”. A short clip of the soundtrack # 3: Legends of Azeroth can be listened here.

Critical Hit – About

Critical Hit is a videogame music tribute band performing original arrangements and electrifying live concerts of music from the most celebrated videogames of all time. Featuring Jason Hayes, lead composer of Blizzard’s hit MMO World of Warcraft, the band’s unique sound blends a variety of musical styles from rock to classical and beyond.

Press Release

Renowned videogame composer Jason Hayes performs gaming’s greatest hits with debut album now available for pre-order.

Today marks the announcement of Critical Hit, an all-star band headed by composer Jason Hayes – best known for his work on the acclaimed World of Warcraft soundtrack – and featuring award-winning performers and recording artists with a staggering list of videogame, film, and live performance credits, including The Annual Primetime Emmy’s, Cirque Du Soleil, American Idol, and more. Critical Hit is pleased to announce their debut album, Critical Hit: Volume One, and release their debut music video, featuring the main theme of Angry Birds.

Critical Hit: Volume One will ship on October 31, featuring 12 electrifying arrangements of gaming’s greatest hits. Tracks from World of Warcraft, Super Mario World, The Legend of Zelda, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, Halo, Final Fantasy, Call of Duty, Metal Gear Solid, and more are presented in a wide variety of musical styles from rock to classical and beyond.

Musicians Hall of Fame inductee David Frank Paich, pianist of the legendary band Toto and co-writer on hit titles Africa, Rosanna, and Hold the Line, is featured on the album.

Critical Hit: Volume One and branded merchandise are now available for purchase. Those who pre-order prior to October 31, 2013 will receive their items personally signed by Jason Hayes.

“Playing in bands was a big part of my life before I became a full-time composer,” comments Critical Hit founder Jason Hayes, “so it’s awesome to be able to return to live performance, while exploring my favorite videogame themes with such amazing and accomplished musician friends. The best part is connecting with people who are as passionate about videogame music as I am.”

access to an exclusive, limited-time online pre-BlizzCon merchandise sale featuring a selection of commemorative items that will be available for purchase at the show for 5 days.

Read the press release below:

Bring BlizzCon(R) to You with the BlizzCon 2013 Virtual Ticket

Experience Blizzard Entertainment’s epic Warcraft®, StarCraft®, and Diablo® community celebration online this November 8 and 9—live and in HD Order NOW at www.blizzcon.com

IRVINE, Calif. –(BUSINESS WIRE)– BlizzCon® 2013 is just two months away—and while tickets to attend the show sold out in seconds, you can still get a virtual front-row seat at Blizzard Entertainment’s epic gaming convention with the BlizzCon Virtual Ticket, now available to order at www.blizzcon.com.

The BlizzCon Virtual Ticket provides comprehensive live online HD coverage of Blizzard’s Warcraft®, StarCraft®, and Diablo® community celebration, taking place November 8 and 9 at the Anaheim Convention Center . Available for $39.99 USD , the Virtual Ticket grants viewers access to both days of the show with two exclusive channels featuring unmatched BlizzCon content, including:

Developer Panels: Get the latest news and behind-the-scenes insight into your favorite Blizzard games—straight from the people who make them.

Community Contests: Witness the spectacle of the legendary BlizzCon Costume Contest and the new-for-2013 Talent Contest, both hosted by comedian and BlizzCon veteran Jay Mohr .

Closing Ceremony: Be a part of the closing festivities on Saturday night, capping off two full days of Blizzard gaming and eSports action (more details to be announced later).

On-Demand Replays: Rewatch epic moments with the Virtual Ticket’s DVR functionality, and catch content you might have missed for up to two weeks after the show’s over.

Bonus Loot! Anyone who orders a Virtual Ticket will also receive this year’s BlizzCon-exclusive in-game goodies for World of Warcraft®, StarCraft II, Diablo III, and Hearthstone™: Heroes of Warcraft™ (details coming soon). The Virtual Ticket also grants access to an exclusive, limited-time online pre-BlizzCon merchandise sale featuring a selection of commemorative items that will be available for purchase at the show.† This special pre-BlizzCon sale is scheduled to take place over a 5-day period in the weeks leading up to the show, and will be followed by a public sale offering a more limited selection of items. More details will be announced at www.blizzcon.com in the weeks ahead.

ATTN: DIRECTV® Viewers! DIRECTV customers in the United States will once again be able to join the excitement by ordering the DIRECTV BlizzCon 2013 Pay Per View event, priced at $49.99 USD , which includes the Virtual Ticket online stream and in-game goodies mentioned above as part of the purchase. More information on the DIRECTV Pay Per View event, including how to order, will be announced at a later date.

Free eSports Streams! Even if you don’t purchase a Virtual Ticket, you’ll still be able to catch plenty of BlizzCon action online. Coverage of the BlizzCon opening ceremony and this year’s BlizzCon eSports tournaments—including the StarCraft II World Championship Series Global Finals and the World of Warcraft Arena Global Invitational—will be streamed for free in HD at www.blizzcon.com and the official WCS website (www.starcraft2.com/wcs).

BlizzCon 2013 would not be possible without the passion and enthusiasm of Blizzard Entertainment gamers around the world and the generosity of the event’s partners—Intel, NVIDIA, Sony Computer Entertainment , DIRECTV, SteelSeries, GIGABYTE, Rosewill, and EVGA—who provide demo-station hardware, peripherals, and more, and whose support helps make the broadcast possible.

Blizzplanet staff members DPershonok, Red Shirt Guy, Montoya and Travis Morrow are at BlizzCon 2013 to bring coverage. Medievaldragon (myself) is watching the livestream and downloading the press kit to share its content for our loyal visitors. Over the next few weeks, I’ll be transcribing most of the panels along with screenshots of the slideshows. Bookmark this page and visit it every few days for any updates. Spread the word.

SteelSeries, J!NX and The League of S.T.E.A.M. have partnered to brew together a cool promotion that will send a lucky winner and a friend to BlizzCon 2013 (November 8-9th) free along with flight and hotel expenses covered. This contest only applies to North American residents: which includes United States, Canada and Quebec. The follow up winners will get SteelSeries and J!NX prizes.

Make sure to read my personal speculation about this strange and unholy partnership — there is something odd about this partnership that [might] or [not] be a hint of a new Blizzard game announcement. Don’t you love Blizzplanet’s speculations?

CHICAGO – July 29th, 2013 – With the return of BlizzCon this year to Anaheim, California, SteelSeries and our partners JINX and The League of S.T.E.A.M want to send YOU to the festivities in style. This once in a lifetime chance to be a part of gaming history is completely FREE to enter by visiting the contest landing page – http://steelseri.es/blizzcon. Sweepstake entries will be open from July 29th through August 11th to all North American residents.

The grand prize features two BlizzCon Show Passes, airfare and accommodations for you and a friend PLUS one custom costume by award winning costume designers The League of S.T.E.A.M! An additional $2500 in sponsored prizes will also be given away including World of Warcraft Wireless MMO mice and JINX gift cards!

To keep up to date with the latest happenings of all the companies that made this giveaway possible, please visit the following websites.

Speculation-Mode On

I’m sorry to Blizzard Entertainment, but I will shield up with the first amendment of the United States Constitution: Freedom of Speech. Of course, I’ll eat back my words silently if I misfire … oops!

I have seen several promotions and giveaways from licensed partners for several years, but I find the League of S.T.E.A.M to be a very strange partner which is not directly a Blizzard Licensed Partner.

I do know the BlizzCon 2013 Costume Contest sign ups begin on August 5 (approximately) as published recently at the official BlizzCon website. The League of S.T.E.A.M will create a costume for the Ultimate BlizzCon 2013 Giveaway announced in this press release.

I was curious about this League of S.T.E.A.M, and searched online for their website. After reading through their About page, this is what they say:

The League of S.T.E.A.M. is not your average performance group

Our talented group of inventors and actors take the audience back to a time of scientific adventure; a common ground between the paranormal and the Pythagorean. We are monster hunters from the Victorian era. From up on the stage to mingling the crowd, our members engage the audience with proton packs capable of firing blasts of “steam,” zombie manservants on chain-leads, net guns and titillating electro-shock packs and ethereal glowing ghosts. Every piece of machinery is meticulously designed, detailed, and fully functional, from the steam cannon to the extendable “Punchy Fist”. The League travels with an archive of past adventures, preserved and documented for the ambient pleasure of the viewer, featuring exotic specimens and chilling relics from the ancient Orient. Audiences for this extravagant experience continue to grow. The League of S.T.E.A.M. is one of the fastest-growing entertainment groups of its kind, and our series of filmed exploits has ensured us a popularity that fills our events to capacity.

Wait … this is a Steampunk-effing-League?!! I’m sorry, my geeky blood-pressure is going high at the moment. Don’t blame me for speculating, but what if this giveaway is subtly throwing hints about a new Blizzard Entertainment Steampunk-themed video game to be announced at BlizzCon 2013? Is that even feasible to imagine or a loooong-stretch?

Blizzard Entertainment is currently developing two MMOs: the Next-Gen MMO codenamed Titan and a unannounced MMO.

If this speculation doesn’t excite you, I don’t know what will. A Steampunk Blizzard game — would you play something that wicked sweet?

I might be totally wrong on this one, I admit. However, tell me straight to the face you won’t get excited after reading what the League of S.T.E.A.M is and after viewing their photos. I present to you … the League of S.T.E.A.M

Blizzplanet is proud to announce its very own BlizzCon countdown web application for your mobile device. This is designed to be used on your iOS or Android mobile phone. Follow these steps on your phone and get excited for BlizzCon!

2.If you are on iOS a button should popup with instructions. If it doesn’t, tap the Arrow button on the bottom bar of Safari. If you are on Android it varies from device to device but look for an Add Bookmark to Home screen option.

Blizzard Entertainment is accepting submissions to participate in the Talent Contest held at BlizzCon. Fans can show off their talents and skills in any form and shape, whether singing, dancing, playing an instrument, etc.

An exciting new contest is coming to this year’s show: the BlizzCon2013 Talent Contest! Blizzard gamers are an incredibly talented bunch, and this is your opportunity to shine a spotlight on your skills and celebrate Blizzard gaming culture along with BlizzCon attendees and viewers from around the world.

Can you play the Diablo theme on a 12-string guitar? Can you sing Lament of the Highborn? Are you the living embodiment of Sarah Kerrigan? Does your band play a Blizzard-themed song you can’t wait for everyone to hear? Well, we can’t wait to watch you act, sing, dance, and strut your stuff live on stage at BlizzCon 2013!

To be considered, you’ll need to create a 2-minute video of you (or your band, troupe, or what have you) performing your Blizzard-themed talent, post it on YouTube, and submit a link (or if you’re part of a troupe, have your troupe’s spokesperson upload it). Below are some examples of the kind of acts we have in mind.

Remember, what follows are just some ideas and guidelines. We know you have skills we haven’t even dreamed of, so surprise us! We’re eagerly looking forward to seeing you in action.

Drama! Re-enact a scene or monologue from a Blizzard game

Comedy! Make us laugh Blizzard-inspired stand-up or sketch comedy

Music! Perform an instrumental or vocal cover of a Blizzard song, or write and perform your own original composition

Dance! Come up with an original dance routines set to Blizzard music or original Blizzard-themed compositions

Please don’t limit yourself, and don’t be afraid to show us your best, because we aren’t selecting finalists based on any pre-existing categories. Instead finalists will be selected based on talent, live performance (remember, you could be performing on stage!), humor, entertainment, originality, creativity, and strong Blizzard theming.